The present study is mainly intended to examine the concept of the functionalurban region. In accordance with this concept, the boundaries of the outerzone of the Warsaw agglomeration are regarded as identical with the extentof the area displaying spatial links with its inner zone, following from thedistribution of places of residence and work. Practically, it has been assumed that thedaily extent of the investigated area is determined by commuting to work in Warsawfrom suburban areas as in 1973, while the percentage relation of people commutingto work in Warsaw to the number of people employed in the nonagriculturalsectors in the given administrative unit (community or town) is taken as thebasic measure of link intensity. The marginal value of the indicator of linkshas been taken to be 0.01, less than the analogous marginal values used in theliterature up to now (Fig. 1, see also Potrykowska 1983).

This study is to present the dynamics of urban agglomerations from 1868/1871to tie latest data for 1975, or exactly for the past 105 years. Populationsize will be given for the agglomerations in eleven historical cross-sections:18681871, 1897/1900. 1910/1913, 1921/1925, 1931/1933, 1939, 1946, 1950, 1960,1970 1975. Over the last century, what is now Poland's national territory hadbelonged to different state organisms; hence, the differing statistics and thedifferent census years. Censuses had been carried out in different years bothin each of the three partitioning powers before the First World War and on theterritories belonging to the German state between 1918 and 1945, which accountsfor the double data given for some of the above time cross-sections. Data for1939 and 1975 rely on estimates rather than on census statistics. All that accountsfor the high differentiation of the statistics now available.

The spatial structure of towns has long been a common topic of interestto researchers in different fields. The problem of urban spatial structure croppedup first in studies on the physiognomy of towns and, through deepened analysesof the historical development of towns, of their gradual accretion and diversification,they gradually comprised the functional differentiation of individual city quarters.Parallel with studies on the spatial structure of immovable facilities and on thefunctional differentiation of the urban territory, the demographic line of researchin urban studies was developing too. Population size and population densitywere the demographic factors that most frequently appeared in those studies.Subsequent studies involved the age and sex structures of urban populations,their education and occupation structures (Bystroń 1915, Wąsowicz 1935, Jelonek1968. Jelonek and Werwicki 1971). On the ground of socio-cultural premises,a broad research trend known as urban social ecology has developed too (Weclawowicz1975, Zbieg 1978). An analysis and a comparison of studies in those variousresearch directions vindicate the contention that morphological and demographicphenomena in urban space are interdependent.

Poland's present territory is an interesting example of a differentiation of thetransportation infrastructure resulting from different history of its individualcomponents. In some aspects, the consequences of the 19th c. political divisionremain visible till today. This is particularly true of the railway network, thebulk of which dates back to the times when Poland's territory was split inthree parts by three partitioning powers.

The Polish state did not exist from 1795 till 1918, except for a short timeduring the Napoleonic Wars, when the Duchy of Warsaw played the part ofa surrogate state. In the course of those 123 years, Europe had developeda modern transport network, which included railways, highways and inland canals.In the Polish territory this network was designed and constructed by alien statesin consideration of their own interests and not the needs of Poland, which wasnot to regain independence till 1918.

Each of the three partitioning states was at a different stage of economicdevelopment and pursued a different transport policy, which resulted in a considerabledifferentiation of the transportation infrastructure in the area of Poland. Thesituation became particularly evident after 1918. when areas of extreme disparityas regards the density of the transport network fell within the borders of onecountry.

The fundamental goal of the present paper is to define spatial i n t e r d e p e n d e n c e s 3between the road infrastructure and the level of socio-economic development inPoland. As an element of detecting regularities in the occurrence of socio-economicphenomena, such research is of a basic character. The findings may contributeto a better understanding of the way of functioning of the country's socio-economicsystem. The paper also offers a model of research which may be of use ingeographical analyses conducted for the purpose of the spatial planning of thetransportation infrastructure of the country and its regions. The reaching of thisgoal consists in a concretization of models which describe the interaction ofsocio-economic development and the transportation infrastructure.

Tie main aim of the study is to establish the proper methodology. In thesame way as in every classification or typology, the first task is to selectprope- diagnostic characteristics and their measures, theoretically correct and applicablein a cognitive procedure. The next task is to carry out in a proper way thenormilization of the variables, expressing these characteristics, and finally to applya prcved method for grouping multifeatured units. The methods adopted shouldmake it possible to utilize available statistical material and compare the resultsin tine and space.

This article is an attempt to introduce the concept of the world food systemAttention is here focused on the first stage in developing the concept. Thisstage covers the definition, origin and scope of the concept. The argument presentedis based on three lines of reasoning:

The systems approach is an essential tool in the analysis of complexsets of relations.

In the contemporary world we have to deal with interdependencies ofa global character which form a system at the world level.

Within this world system an area of interdependent relationships concerninginternational food supplies can usefully be recognized.

Geographers are currently facing a task of launching intensive, basic researchinto the factors and processes which cause the development of a new worldorganization of socio-economic space. This space and its evolution are increasinglyinfluenced by the emergence and the rapid advancement of the world economyIt should be considered a new and lasting element of the historical sequenceof development in the second half of the 20th century, which will also be presentin the early 21st century. It can be assumed that it will greatly affect theconditions of the life of people and societies.

The present article is an attempt at defining some of these factors and processes.They seem to exert a major influence on the current transformations in theorganization of the global space.

The last decade brought about interesting results of investigations on climatein that area (Hess et al. 1977, Obrębska-Starklowa 1977, Michna 1978, Michnaand Paczos 1978), as well as geobotanic and hydrologic characteristics of that area.Such studies make it possible to have a fresh look at the climatic positionof the Low Beskid range in relation to the West and East Carpathians. Therefore,the aim of the present article is to show the distinct character of climatic conditionsof the transversal depression in relation to the West Carpathians, and, next,to present the functional characteristics of some environmental elements dependenton climate in those units. The second part of the task is to verify still fragmentary,because of scarcity of observations, results of climatological research.

The aim of the paper is to determine both qualitative and quantitative changesof the Vistula channel under the impact of human activity. This problem isdiscussed against the background of changes of the river channel types and ofthe channel mezoforms connected with them. The morphometry and dynamicsof the most typical channel mezoforms have been determined. Changes whichoccurred in the channel in consequence of building of the first link of theLower Vistula cascade, i.e. the Włocławek dam, are characterized. Some possiblechanges of the channel in case of cascading the Vistula river are presented.

Building of river cascade results in significant changes in the geographic environment.Hydrological conditions and the course of river channel processes and on by--reservoir areas also water, microclimatic, pedologie and vegetation conditions undergotransformation. The degree of human interference into environment depends, firstof all, on technical parameters of cascades, local geomorphological, hydrologicaland pedological conditions and on applied methods of counteracting negativeconsequences of the river impoundment.

The interest in the river cascade influence on environment arose in Poland onlyin 1950s. Cascades constructed, first of all. in mountain and submontane regionsand few objects of such type on lowland rivers, were comprised with the respectiveinvestigations. One of these objects is the Włocławek dam on the Vistula givenover to operation in 1970, which constitutes the first link of the planned LowerVistula cascade.

Two variants of the hydrotechnical structure on the Lower Vistula are discussedin the paper. Results of many-year investigations on the Włocławek dam influenceon environment, and particularly on hydrological conditions of the river and ofadjoining areas, are presented. An attempt to determine changes in water conditionsof the Lower Vistula valley after completion of building of the cascade was undertaken.

Geochemical processes lead to continuous changes in the soil medium. Thesechanges cannot be indifferent to man, as they decide about his existence, affectingthe content of nutrients in soil indispensable for the growth of plants. In addition,anthropogenic factor overlaps more and more often the processes of natural chemicalchanges in soil. Its action leads on the one hand to an enrichment (orsupplementation) of soil in chemical compounds (fertilization) which are leachedor taken out with crops, or to an impoverishment of soils on wide areas oreven their complete degradation under the effect of harmful industrial emissions,on the other.

The most characteristic elements for the processes mentioned are calcium carbonatescontained in soils. However, we neither dispose of an exact inventory of theoccurrence of carbonates in soils, nor we know the localization of processes leadingto their impoverishment all over the country. In this connection the investigationsaiming at a spatial presentation of existing state in the occurrence of carbonatesand of the reaction of soils as well as at determination of directions of changesof this state were carried out. The investigation enabled to make an attempt ofpresentation of the above changes cartographically. The-maps, apart from the presentpicture of the occurrence of carbonates and of the soil reaction, proved itsunfavourable changes. Information contained in the maps enables both to counteractefficiently and/or anticipate threats for agriculture connected with worsening stateof acidification of arable soils.

The idea of studies in physical geography in Mongolia was born in Polandearly in the sixties (Klimek et al. 1976a. b). However, it took ten years before theformal grounds enabling their realization came into existence. Those were agreementson joint research in physical geography carried out in 1974 and 1976 betweenthe Institute of Geography and Spatial Organization, Polish Academy of Sciencesand the Institute of Geography and Geocryology, Mongolian Academy of Sciences.On these grounds there were organized two Mongolian-Polish Physical GeographyExpeditions: The KHANGAI in 1974-1975 and the TRANSMONGOLIA in 1976-1980. Both expeditions were organized by the Institute of Geography and SpatialOrganization Polish Academy of Sciences — Department of Physical Geography inKraków and were headed by Professor Kazimierz Klimek. About 70 researchworkers participated in both expeditions. Apart from the Institute of Geographyand Spatial Organization. Polish Academy of Sciences, they represented the followinginstitutions: the Nature and Natural Resources Protection Research Center. PolishAcademy of Sciences (Kraków), Jagiellonian University (Kraków), University ofMining and Metallurgy (Kraków), University of Agriculture (Kraków), High PedagogicSchool (Kraków), Adam Mickiewicz University (Poznań), Mikołaj KopernikUniversity (Toruń), Maria Curie-Sklodowska University (Lublin), Warsaw University(Warszawa). Forest Research Institute (Warszawa).

The upland steppes of Mongolia cover over 25 per cent of the total area ofthat country. Due to the abundance of grassland it is an important economicregion. On account of a considerable deficiency of precipitation in relation to thepotential evaporation, estimated at about 760 mm/year (Mirovoy... 1974), the knowledgeof water circulation and evaluation of conditions of the formation of waterresources are of great practical significance.

There is a lack of thorough studies on water circulation in the region of-theMongolian steppes. Earlier hydrological investigations of water conditions of steppe,carried out by Russians (Kuznetsov 1964, 1968, 1973, Kuznetsov and Murzaev1963, Marinov 1956, Marinov and Popov 1963, and others), had a general character.The results of the most recent investigations carried out in the steppe and foreststeppezones are to be found in publications by the Mongolian-Polish GeographicExpeditions: "Khangai 1974-1975" and "Transmongolia 1976-1978" (Froehlich et al.1975, Słupik 1975, 1980, Chełmicki and Tserev 1980, Chelmicki 1982, Glazik1980, Michalczyk et al. 1980, Soja 1980).